Steam regeneration.



A. SURGE.

STEAM REGENERATION. APPLICATION FILED mm. 18, 1909.

' 1,015,277. Patented Jan.16,1912.

A ttest I In ventoz M by 14 W,

/4W77;/ $441 WM 74 l m I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

nnoLPH some, or s'r. JOSEPH, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR T0 AMERICAN anennnnaroa coMPANY, on NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION or NEW YORK.

ST AM anonunanrion.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 18, 1909. SerialNo; 478,718.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ADOLPH Sonar, a resident of the city of St. Joseph, in the county of Berrien and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steam Regeneration, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying'drawin gs, formcontained in exhaust steam into the general body of regenerating liquid in a regenerating chamber or accumulator. Unless such transfer be very rapid, the temperatureof the regenerating liquid in the accumulator will be subject to sudden and wide variation when the exhaust steam is deliv cred into the apparatus or apparatuses of this sort in irregular quantities as is often the case in actual practice.

In accordance with the invention, the current of steam, before being introduced into the accumulator, is met by a shower of liquid, as from the main body of liquid. in

the accumulator; and this li uid is delivered into the current of steam in such finely divided condition or spray as to'be thoroughly mixed with the steam which latter is thus made to yield its heat up readily. Moreover, the force of the current of steam is sufiicient to carry thesteam-ladened liquid back again into the regen'erator chainber or accumulator. Besides this main feature, the invention includes the embodiment of the same in an apparatus, and its coordination with other features of'the apparatus.

The single figure of the drawings illustrates an apparatus. for carrying the improvements into practice, such figurefbeing a "ertical section through the apparatus duit bflto the tank a.

delivered into the incoming current of steam in the conduit 7) and in such a way that it shall be picked up, thoroughly heated and carried back into the accumulator by said current. To accomplish such circulation of the water by the current of incoming steam, a connection (5 is provided between the tank "a. and the conduit 6, such connection preferably terminatingi'n a spraying device or nozzle c, whereby the water will be delivered onto the steam in a more orless finely di- Patented Jan. 16,1912.

vided condition. In this way will rapidly.

absorb the heat of the steam and will be borne upon the current of steam and carried backup into the accumulator.

Embodied in the connection d may be a valve f which is operatively connected with a freely swinginggute gin the conduit 6. Through the operation of some such means as this, the delivery of water from the tank a to the conduit I) may be made to'depend upon the delivery of steam thrpugh the con- For instance, when steam is. being delivered through the conduit b from say the'exhaust of a recipro-j eating engine, such delivery may be irregular or it may stop. 'lVhen the delivery of steam has stopped, this gate 7 will assume a substantially vertical position and will close the valve f, while the latter will be governed in the exteutof its'opening by the degree to which the gate is raised by the incoming steam. Thus, the admission of water from the tank a is governed according to the quantity of steam being admitted to the accumulator. During the time that the steam is shut off in conduit Z), the pressure in chambe'ra gradually drops, and some of-the water contained therein evaporates into additional steam to operate the turbine. Such evaporation causes a lowering in the water level in the chamber. There are also preferably connected with the gate g, a valve 76 in a'pipe c, through which live steam may be furnished to the accumulator, and a valve In in a pipe Z provided for the purpose of furnishing water to the accumulator. These arrangements are made in order tointroduce live steam to keep the turbine, or other engine depending upon the supply of regenerated steam, in operation, when for some reason or other thereciprocating engine or the particular device furnishing the exhaust steam stops running for anyconsiderable period of time. The connections between cumulator drops below nornal.

the valves h and k respectively and the gate 9 are such that when the gate is in a vertical position the valves will be open. The opening of these valves however, will not immediately permit the supplemental steam and water to be introduced into the accumulator, for two other valves .1 and n are provided to control the precise inst-ants of admission of the supplemental steam and water. These valves are operatively connected with afloat o in. a small chamber ;0 communicating with the accmnulator, whereby said valves are opened whenever the water level in the ac- Moreover, the valve connections are such that the valve m will open immediately as the level of the water in the accumulator becomes less than normal, and the valve 12 only after the level has dropped to an abnormally low point. As in the case of the water introduced into the conduit Z), arrangements are preferably made to have the water from the pipe .Z sprayed upon the steam which isbeing'int-roduced through the pipe 2', and the accompanying drawing is made with this preferable arrangement in view.

In the apparatus illustrated in the drawing there is provided, in addition to the chamber a, a lower chamber 1". This lower chamber receives the overflow from the upper chamber a through an overflow pipe 8 and discharges it through a draw-off pipe't which may be led to a convenient point for utilizing such heated water as may be discharged from the accumulator. It is also preferable to lead the supply conduit 7) through thelower chamber '2', so that the heat of the exhaust steam being introduced through this conduit may so far as possible be conserved in the apparatus.

The operation of the device is as follows; When the exhaust steamis being delivered through the conduit b, the gate 9 will be raised according to the quantity of steam passing underneath it and the valve f will permit a proportionate quantity of water from the accumulator to be sprayed u on this current of steam. The latter will picli up the water and carry it back into the accumulator thoroughly impregnated with the heat from the steam. Above the discharge end of the conduit 7) in the accumulator is a, deflector u, and as the mixture" of water and steam strikes this deflector, the water will be deposited thereon and will drip off again into the tank. As soon as the gate 9 has been lifted by the incoming steam, the valves h and 7c cont-rolling the supply of supplemental steam and water will be immediately .closed thus preventing any admission of supplemental steam or water so long as steam is being introduced through the conduit b. then, however, there ceases to be a delivery of steam through the conduit 6 for any reason, the dropping of the gate 9 will cause the valves h and to open and the valve f to close according to the precise position of the gate. The turbine, or other device for utilizing the regenerated steam, now draws steam from the water in the re generative chamben until the heat stored in such Water is exhausted to a. predetermined point. Such action will lower the water level in the accumulator by a corresponding amount and the float 0 will accordingly drop and through its connections will open the valve 172- in the live steam pipe thus admitting steam at a predetermined pressure to the accumulator and keeping the turbine in operation until steam is a ain supplied through the conduit 6. If tie supply of steam to the accumulator from one source or another is insufiicientto prevent the level of water therein from reaching an abnormally low point, then the float 0 through its connections with the valve in the pipe Z will cause water to be sprayed upon the steam entering through the pipe The water thus admitted will be heated and carried up into the accumulator until a predetermined level of water has been reached, when the float will operate to shut off the supply of supplemental water. When the water level in the accumulator rises above the normal level,"it will be carried off through the overflow pipe and into the lower chamber whence it may be discharged through the pipe 25.

Various chan es may be'made in the apparatus. herein s own and described for carrying the present improvements into practice. For instance, it will be clear that the delivery of the water upon the incoming current of steam may be made use of in connection with various other devices differing both in ctiiistl'iictioiraiitl utility from the device illustrated and described in the presentcase. It is also obvious that the invention is not limited to embodiment in the apparatus which has been produced herewith for purposes of illustration and explanation.

I claim as my invention:

1. A steam regenerating apparatus including in combination, a regenerating chamber, a conduit for conveying steam to said chamher, and means for delivering water from said chamber to said conduit in a finely divided state, the conduit being substantially unrestricted beyond the place of delivery-of the water, whereby the water is heated and returned to the chamber by the steam flow- .ing through the conduit with only a slight obstruction to the flow of steam.

2.. A steam regenerating apparatus including in combination, a regenerating chamber. a conduit for conveying steam to said chamber, and means rendered operative by the steam forYlelivering water from said chamber to said conduit in amountapproximately proportional t the amountof steam flowing chamber, valve controlled means for deliverand connections between said through said conduit, the conduit being substantially unrestricted from the place of delivery of the Water, whereby the Water is heated and returned to the chamber by the steam flowing through the conduit with onlya slight obstruction to the flow of steam.

3. A steam regenerating apparatus including in combination, a regenerating chamber, a conduit for conveying steam to said chamber, and valve controlled means rendered operative by the steam for delivering Water from said chamber to said conduit.

4. A steam .regenerating apparatus, in cluding in combination, a regenerating chain? her, a conduit for conveying-steam to said ing Water from said chamber to said con dult, a vane located in the path-of the steam V vane'.;-and said valve' I I 5. A steam regenerating apparatus-including in combination, a regenerating chamber,

a conduitfor the introduction of steam, a

from risingv above a ipe terminating in a sprayingno'zzle to d iver liquid from said chamber lnto said conduit, a valve. in said pipe, avane'in said conduit, and operative connect ons between said valve and vane.

6.- A steam regenerating apparatus includ ing i'n combination, a regenerating chamher, a conduit for conveying steam to saidchamber, means for delivering Water. from said chamber'to said conduit whereby. the

Water is heated and returned. to said cham- 35 ber,and means for preventingthe water predetermined level in said chamber. v, 7. A steam regenerating apparatus including in combination, a regeneratin chamber, an expansion chamber, a conduit or convey ing steam from the expansion chamber. to the regenerating chamber, means for deliver ing Water from the regenerating chamber to the conduit, and an Overflowconnection between the two chambers. p

8. A steam regenerating apparatus including in combination a chambenmeans for introducingsteam therein, means for introducing Water therein, and valve controlled means for regulating the introduction of both steam and-Water by variations inlthe level of the ater in said chamber.

9. A steam regenerating apparatus including in combination means for. supplying" Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing Washington, D. 0.

ing the supplies of Water and secondary.

laws for regulating the supplies of secondary steam and Water to the apparatus.

11. A steam regenerating apparatus in cluding in combination, means for supply-.

ing steam. to be regenerated, a secondary steam supply, a water supply, and means for automatically regulating the sup lies of the secondary".Stea'iln andwater to t e regener-' ator whereby the'seoondary steam supply will st art'to flow to the regenerator before the" water supply begins to flow.

12. A steam regenerating a paratus in cluding in combination means or supplying steam to be 'regenerated,"and a secondary steam supply,--a water supply, and means controlled by :the'flowlof steam to be re: generated and also bythe variation" in level of water in apparatus for regulating thesupplies of secondary steam and water.

13. A steam regenerating apparatus in- ..cluding in combination a regenerating chamber, means for supplying the steam to be regenerated to said chambenfmea'ns for supplyingwate'r and secondary steam to the resaid' last mentioned supply means opened and: clos"ed respectively'by -the decrease and increase or thefflow of steam to regenerated', and a second valve 'mechanisiii opened and closed respectively tby the "lowering and rising of Water in the regeneratinga'pparatus. v

1.41;; Aisteam regenerating apparatus includin'g incombination means for supplying steam to"l e-regenerated, a second steam supply, means-for ccmtrolling the second steam generating apparatus, a val-ve'mechanism in. r

supply by water the apparatus andby the steam tdbe regenerate This specification signed and witnessed this llth'day of February, A. D. 1909.

. I p ADOLPH SOB-GE...

Signed in the presence of' p ,MARJORIE RoLLINs,

CARRIE E. JORDAN.

the Commissioner of Patents, 

